The End of the Band
by luli27
Summary: They won the war, now what? My take on how they should end the show. SJ & DV as usual. Not part of my Te Quedaste universe. One shot.


**The End of the Band**

**Disclaimer: **Nope, not mine - no matter how much I try and plan their lives.

**A/N:** This is just something I've been thinking about since I heard of the cancellation and the fact that some of the cast will be joining Atlantis. It's what I'd like to see happen and the only thing I think will make sense. This is a one shot and has nothing to do with the universe I created with Te Quedaste, Te Amare and SG1 in Atlantis.

"Having seconds thoughts?" Vala whispered in Daniel's ear, as she came up to stand behind him.

"What?" Daniel asked, as he turned around and looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Vala said, as she waved one hand in the air to indicate the gathering, and wound the other around Daniel's waist. "You seemed lost in thought, are you regretting the decision to leave?"

"No," Daniel said automatically and then took the time to really think about it. "Not really," he said again, a few moments later. "We accomplished what we set out to do. The Goa'ulds and replicators are a thing of the past now and so are the Ori."

"Finally," Vala couldn't help adding.

"Yes, finally," he agreed with a smile. "I know there are no guarantees that there isn't another threat around the corner, but I did my part. And, frankly, I'm no longer up to running around the galaxy, fighting my way through. I'm not as young as I used to be."

"Oh, Daniel, you're still quite fit – and gorgeous." Vala disagreed, as her hand dropped from Daniel's waist to pinch his behind. "Yep, as gorgeous as ever."

"Humph," Daniel said as he pushed the glasses, that had not gone down his nose, up. "Well, be that as it may, the fact is that my time in SG1 is over. It might go on with Mitchell in charge, but the team I knew is over – for good this time."

"Yeah," Vala agreed. "I guess it is, since none of the original four will be remaining on the SGC. I've heard it said time and time again that the SGC won't be the same ever again."

"No," Daniel agreed, with a small laugh. "I don't imagine it will be."

Daniel fell silent for a while and after watching him observe those present, Vala said, "you're sad."

"Yes, I am," though it hadn't really been a question, Daniel answered it nevertheless. "This place has been my home, more so than any apartment, for the last ten years and these people have been my family. I'll miss them. But it is time to move on. And I've looked forward to this opportunity my whole life."

Before Vala could say anything in response, Jack walked up to them and said, as he slapped Daniel on the shoulder, "Hey, kids. Whatcha doing?"

"Hey, Jack. When did you get here?" Daniel asked, as he returned the one arm hug the older man gave him.

"Just now." Jack answered, as he too turned to look at the proceedings, after exchanging nods with Vala. "I had to stop by Landry's office to check in, but I came down here right after."

"Have you seen Sam yet?" Daniel wanted to know.

"Yeah," Jack nodded. "I met her on the way to Landry's office."

More like he went to see her before going to Landry's office, Daniel thought, but kept the comment silent.

"She's finishing her last minute packing and will be here soon," almost as soon as he finished the saying the words, he saw Sam had entered the room. "Hey, there she is." He waved at her and she smiled, as she saw them and made her way towards them.

"Hey, Sam," Daniel greeted her when she joined them.

"Daniel, Vala," Sam greeted them, as she walked up to Jack, kissed his cheek and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Hi," she told him in a soft voice that Daniel had never heard from her before she and Jack got together. She turned back to them and asked them, "Are you guys all packed?"

"Yes," Daniel answered and Jack noticed that he hadn't even bothered to turned and consult with Vala, he just answered. "You?"

"Yes," Sam answered, as she laid her head on Jack's shoulder. "I just finished overseeing the last of the boxes being moved from my lab. I finished moving the stuff from my quarters yesterday. There's just the house left."

"Yeah," Jack agreed and he tightened his arms around her shoulders when he'd heard the sadness in her tone. "But I'm here to help now. It won't take us long to get it all done."

Daniel looked at his best friends and had to smile at how comfortable and right they looked together. It had taken a lot of years before they were able to be together, but they had finally had their chance when Jack was promoted to DC and Sam transferred to Area 51 and they had taken it without a single thought.

Though both agreed that all those years of waiting were more than worth it, they hadn't wanted to wait anymore and had married in a simple Vegas wedding a few weeks before Sam was transferred back to the SGC. A transfer Sam had not been happy about; she had been ready to move on with her life, to spend more time with Cassie, enjoy what time she could with her new husband and maybe try and start a family. She had not wanted to go back to risking her life on a daily basis. Fate, however, had had other plans and the new threat to the galaxy had required her to go back to the SGC and the front lines.

But now that the newest threat had been neutralized, she could go back to her previous plans – with a few changes. They'd both had enough of the whole long distance relationship thing and wanted to be together, especially since Sam planned on getting pregnant as soon as possible - after all she wasn't getting any younger either. They'd talked about it and had decided that her going with him to DC made the most sense. Jack was still needed at his job and retiring had just not being an option, not only because neither the President nor the Joint Chiefs were ready to let him go, but because he was not ready to retire yet. As tiring as he found dealing with politicians and, as much as he disliked the paperwork, the job was still challenging and strangely enough, he'd found it rewarding.

Because Sam was planning on having a family soon, going back out into the field was no longer an option. And frankly, Sam was fine with that. She'd spent enough years being shot at and wouldn't mind having a quieter life from now on. She was staying in the military, but would be focusing on scientific research and development. The transfer also came with a promotion to full Colonel and she would be in charge of the R&D department. It was a promotion she had more than earned, but it was also a way to circumvent the whole being in the same chain of command problem that had kept them apart for so long, and which had been suspended during the Ori crisis, because she would now be reporting directly to the Chiefs and not Jack.

The transfer also meant that she would have a more administrative role than ever before and while she was not really looking forward to that, it was a price she was willing to pay if it meant having the family she'd always wanted. And the truth was that it was a good move for her career. So, while Sam was more than happy with all the changes, it was still hard to think about leaving the SGC – even if it was the second time she was doing so, maybe _because_ it was the second time she was doing it. Jack knew just what she was feeling and was doing what he could to support her.

"It's just too bad that you won't be here to help with all the packing, Danny," Jack said. "You'll be missing all the fun."

"Oh, yes, Jack. I'm really torn up about missing all the sorting, packing and carrying. I don't know how I'll ever get over it. And yet," Daniel said with a smirk, "somehow, I'm sure I will."

"Huh," Jack said. "Shows what you know. You'll also be missing pizza, beer and cake. We'll be throwing a little party to celebrate our last night in the Springs. You sure you don't want to wait and come to the house with us?" Jack offered.

"And wait another three months before we can make the trip? No, thank you." Daniel answered firmly. "And I hope you won't be doing anything to stop us." He added with a glare.

"Who, me?" Jack asked with his best innocent face, which no one bought.

"Don't worry, Daniel," Sam said with a laugh. "He won't do anything. We'll miss you but you'll make it this time."

Daniel smiled at her and nodded just as Mitchell and Teal'c joined the group.

"Hey, what are you guys doing hiding back here? You should be out there mingling. This party is for you." Mitchell said, as he and Teal'c passed around the glasses they had brought with them.

"We will," Daniel answered, as he accepted the glass and took a sip. "But first we're just spending some time together."

Mitchell nodded, as he looked around the group. "So, Jackson, you guys all packed?"

"Yes, we're all packed and ready to go. Most of our belongings have already been loaded aboard the Odyssey. We'll be departing first thing tomorrow morning." Daniel answered.

Mitchell nodded again, and just had to give it one more try. "You sure I can't talk you into staying and continue on with SG1?"

"Nope," Daniel chuckled and shook his head, as Vala, Sam and Jack smiled. "There's nothing you can say that will make me change my mind. Have to admire your persistence, though."

"Yeah, I didn't think so, but I had to try."

"I know," Daniel acknowledge. "And thank you for the interest but . . ."

"Yeah, yeah. This is your dream come true, I know." Mitchell then turned to Vala and said, "And you? Are you sure you won't stay? I mean, I know you weren't part of the original SG1 but I kind of got used to you being on the team and you were useful on occasion," he kidded.

"Oh, thank you so much, Mitchell." Vala said sarcastically. "But you better be careful or all this praise will go to my head."

"Seriously," he said after chuckling. "You'd be an asset to the team. You sure you don't want to stay?"

"No thank you," Vala answered, uncharacteristically serious. "It means a lot that you'd ask but I stayed at the SGC to help fight the Ori and stop Adria. Now, that we've done that . . ."

"We can still explore the galaxy," he said coaxingly, though he knew it was a lost cause. "You might even find some treasure."

"As tempting as that sounds, dear," Vala laughed and shook her head. "I'd much rather go with Daniel and explore the city of the Ancients."

What went unsaid, but everyone knew, was that she would be going with Daniel even if he was going to the most primitive, remote archeological dig. That he was going to one of the most sophisticated cities ever, was just a bonus; for Vala what really matter was being with Daniel. For Daniel's part, as much as he wanted to go to Atlantis, it wouldn't have felt right if Vala wasn't going also. He wasn't sure how she'd done it, but she'd become an essential part of his life and he could no longer imagine it without her in it.

Neither was really sure how they'd gotten to this point. There certainly had been no serious discussion about it. Their relationship had just evolved gradually to the point where they made decisions about the future together. When the Ori situation had been resolved and the opportunity to go to Atlantis had presented itself, it had gone unspoken that if one were to go, the other would follow. They hadn't even said 'I love you' to each other yet, but they were both sure of their feelings for each other. Both knew that there wasn't anything they wouldn't do for each other, including sacrificing their lives for one another. There'd also not been any talk of marriage, but Daniel was sure they'd get around to that sooner or later. He rather thought that it might be an unplanned event, probably on one of their visits back to Earth, because there was no way that Daniel could even conceive of marrying without Jack, Sam, Teal'c and Mitchell present.

"And you Teal'c," Mitchell said turning to look at the Jaffa. "You sure you want to go with these two?"

"Indeed, I am, Colonel Mitchell," Teal'c answered with a nod of his head. "Daniel Jackson is still prone to accidents and tends to get lost when studying new artifacts and Vala Mal Doran is, like the Tauri say, a moth to the flame when it comes to trouble."

"Hey," Vala and Daniel protested together, as Sam, Jack and Mitchell chuckled.

"Someone has to go," Teal'c continued, ignoring them all. "And keep an eye on them. It might as well be me, since you are needed at the SGC and O'Neill has other responsibilities now."

Jack nodded his head in agreement with Teal'c, more than grateful than the loyal Jaffa was going along with Daniel. Truth be told one of the main reasons why Jack had been so against Daniel going to Atlantis, besides the fact that he would miss him, was that Jack knew how Daniel got when studying new artifacts, especially Ancient ones. Putting Daniel in an Ancient city, with the permission to explore to his heart's content, would more than likely lead to Daniel getting lost in said city and possibly dying of starvation since he'd forget to go and eat and rest - that might be an exaggeration, but not by much.

With Teal'c along for the ride, Jack was sure that Daniel would be looked after and wouldn't get into too much trouble and whatever trouble he'd get into (because he would get into trouble, Jack had no doubts about that) Teal'c would be there to help him get out of it. And Vala would provide distraction and make sure that he ate regularly, as long as, that is, she was not the one leading them into trouble. Frankly, sometimes Jack wondered if even the Jaffa's strength would be enough to keep up with those two or if maybe sending some marines along as backup wouldn't be a better plan. That was something to keep in mind, anyway.

"Well, I guess I'll be the only one staying here, right?" Mitchell said, as he once again looked around the group. "Unless, you Sam . . ."

"Oh, no," Sam stopped him before he could go any further. "Don't look at me. I've already made my plans and nothing short of a . . ." She trailed off and tilted her head. When she resumed speaking she had a bemused smile on her face. "I was going to say that nothing short of a planetary threat or presidential order would make me change my plans. But really, in the last ten years I've helped stop at least three planetary threats. I think I've earned the right to have a life. Now, if another threat were to come up, I'd do my best to help. But I'd do it from a lab and no longer the field." She finished firmly.

"And what about a presidential order, you'd have to come back, right?" At Jack's look, Mitchell hastened to add, "Not that that would happen, of course."

"Of course," Sam repeated, with a smile and a glance up at Jack. "But if that were to happen," she answered, after sipping her glass and considering the idea a few moments. "Well, like I said, I've earned the right to have a life. So, I would have to resign my commission if that were to happen."

The serious tone in her voice left no doubt about her sincerity on the subject and everyone, including Jack was stunned speechless for a few seconds. No one had expected that answer. Well, no one except Vala, who nodded in agreement.

"A girl does get to a point in her life where she wants more than the next adventure and when the thought of children is no longer such an outrageous but rather an enticing one." When she finished, she had to look away as the thought of the child she had so recently lost threatened to break her composure.

Daniel put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. But he couldn't quite erase the surprise in his eyes at her words. Yet another thing they'd never talked about, and frankly something he hadn't even thought about, was children. But if he was hearing her correctly, it seemed that there'd be some in his future after all.

"Exactly," Sam agreed, after a few seconds, to give Vala some time to recover. To Sam's surprise, she had found that she would be missing the former space pirate, almost as much as she'd be missing Daniel and Teal'c. She wasn't entirely sure how she had done it (when it came to Vala, it seemed no one was sure of anything) but she had managed to become an integral part of SG1 and after getting use to her, Sam had found that she rather enjoyed her company. "And I'm not getting any younger, you know. If we want to have kids, we kind have to hurry before we lose the opportunity. Besides, we don't even how long it'll take us to conceive or even if we can after everything my body's gone through in the last ten years."

It was a measure of how tight SG1, past and present, were that they weren't in the least phased about speaking about such a private matter.

"I'm sure you guys will be fine," Daniel assured them.

"We don't really know that Daniel," Jack objected. "We don't really know if the naquada in Sam's blood will have much effect on our efforts."

"I don't think so," Daniel insisted. "I mean, Sha're was able to conceive, wasn't she? And she was still a host. So, I doubt some residual naquada would be a problem. And even if it is, Jack is Thor's favorite human. I'm sure he'd be glad to help you guys if you need any help. Who knows, your kid might actually be the next step in our evolution. After all, aren't they always talking about how Jack's the closest thing to being the fifth race?"

"Hmmm," Jack said, as he and Sam shared a glance. That glance let Daniel know that they'd actually talked about this possibility already. That really shouldn't have surprised Daniel, though they had different areas of expertise and despite how much Jack might try to hide it, the fact was that both of them were extremely bright and between the two, they usually managed to cover all possible angles in any given situation. It was only natural that they do that when it came to something as important as their future offspring.

"I guess we'll cross that bridge when we have to," Jack finally said. "Hey, speaking of which. Where's Bratac? I thought he was coming to see you guys before you left?" Jack asked looking around.

"Indeed," Teal'c answered. "Master Bratac should be arriving shortly. His new responsibilities as the leader of the council do not allow him as much free time as he'd previously enjoyed."

"Is he settling in Ok?" Jack asked. He hadn't really had time to sit down and talk politics with Teal'c in a while.

"Yes." Teal'c answered. "The end of war with the Ori allowed the Jaffa nation to reunite and for Bratac to emerge as the leader. It is a role in which he is remarkably comfortable."

"He should be," Jack answered matter of fact. "He has been a great leader of the Jaffa for a great many years. It's about damn time that that fact was finally recognized by the others." Jack had never understood why Bratac hadn't had a greater role in the Jaffa leadership. It seemed to him that if it hadn't been for him and Teal'c, the Jaffa wouldn't have the freedom they now enjoyed.

"Yes, it is." Teal'c agreed, with a nod of his head. And then, because he knew Jack and they'd had this discussion before, he added, "But he had never wanted such a prominent role in politics; it was only after he saw how close we came to destruction because of inept leadership, that he felt he had no choice but to take a more active role."

"Well, I, for one, am glad that he's finally the head of the Jaffa." Daniel said with relief. "It'll make relations between our two governments that much easier."

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed.

"But Teal'c, are you sure you'd not rather go back and take a place in the council?" Daniel asked for what seemed like the hundredth time to Vala. He'd been asking the same question at least twice a day since the day Teal'c announced his decision to accompany them to Atlantis. But as glad as Daniel was to have his old friend with him on the trip to Atlantis, he didn't want Teal'c to ever regret his decision. He also didn't want Teal'c to go with them out of a sense of obligation and he wasn't completely sure that Jack hadn't put him up to it.

"Indeed, I am DanielJackson. I have not changed my mind since the last time you've inquired," Teal'c answered.

"I'm sorry to keep asking the same thing, Teal'c," Daniel said with a rueful smile. "I just don't want you to regret anything."

"I am not in habit of regretting my decisions, DanielJackson. I always endeavor to think things thoroughly before making a decision to avoid any regrets." Teal'c pointed out. "As I've told you before, I do not have the temperament to engage in politics. The few months I spent on the council last year were enough to last me a lifetime. Such things are better left for those that understand the process and have the patience necessary to engage in it. I do not." He flatly stated and left everyone wondering, if Teal'c didn't have the patience, then how on Earth had Jack lasted at his current post for two years and counting?

"I am much more suited to a life of exploration and will enjoy discovering the city of the Ancients along you and Vala Mal Doran."

"Ok, Teal'c." Daniel said as he slapped Teal'c on the shoulder. "That is the last time I ask you that."

Teal'c bowed his head in agreement but he wasn't holding much hope on that statement. It wasn't, after all, the first time Daniel Jackson had said that either.

"Well," Jack said after a few moments had gone by in silence.

"Well," Said Daniel and Mitchell.

"I guess this is it, huh?" Sam asked.

"Yep, I guess so," answered Daniel.

"I can't believe you guys are leaving," said Mitchell. "When I was given command of SG1, I never thought I'd only have you guys on my team for two years. I somehow thought we'd last another eight."

"Well, look at it this way," Daniel consoled him. "You got two more years out of us than we'd thought you were going to get."

"There is that," he agreed. "I'm gonna miss you guys. The SGC and the SG1 won't be the same without you."

"We'll miss you too, Mitchell." Sam assured him. And while he knew that was true, the fact was that they were all moving on with their lives and wouldn't miss him quite as much as he'd miss them. He would, after all, be the only one that would be doing the same things they all used to do together.

"If I understand these things correctly," Vala said into the new silence that fell. "A toast would be now in order, wouldn't it?" She asked, looking at Daniel.

Daniel nodded and said, "Yes, it would."

They all traded glances once more and as one they raised their glasses and said, "To SG1."


End file.
